You must fulfill certain prerequisites to apply for an Irish passport and you must have obtained citizenship before applying for a passport. Depending on your situation and how you become a citizen, several criteria must be met to obtain a passport
Citizenship can be obtained through naturalization, ancestry, birth, adoption, or refugee status.
You must therefore adhere to specific requirements in each circumstance.
Who is entitled to a passport
Before 2005, anybody born on the island of Ireland, including those born in Northern Ireland, is automatically regarded as a citizen. Even if the parents don’t have Irish passports, this still applies.
But if you were born in Ireland after 2005, you can only become a citizen if one or both of your parents are one of the following:
- Irish
- British (or legally permitted to remain in Northern Ireland or the Irish State without restriction)
- A foreigner who was lawfully residing in Ireland for three of the four years preceding your birth
- Awarded asylum in Ireland
This is because the right to citizenship by birth was eliminated in a 2004 citizenship referendum.
If your parents are foreign nationals, they must demonstrate that they have a real connection to Ireland by proving that they spent the necessary reckonable time in the State before the birth of you.
You can apply for an Irish passport if you or your parent(s) have successfully established your Irish citizenship by birth or descent. If you are 18 years of age or older, you can apply for your first passport; if you are younger than 18, you must receive your parent(s) or legal guardian’s permission (s).
Citizenship through descent passport requirements
Regardless of where you were born, you will automatically be a citizen if either of your parents was an Irish citizen and was born in Ireland. You can then apply for an Irish passport. In this case, you can apply for a passport without being listed in the Foreign Births Register.
However, before you may claim citizenship and apply for your Irish passport, if either of your parents was born outside of Ireland or Northern Ireland, you must have your birth recorded in the Foreign Births Register. Even if your parents are Irish citizens, this still holds.
In addition to the general documents mentioned earlier, the following documents are required for your Irish passport application if you were born abroad to Irish parents
- The Irish birth certificate of your parents
- The union or civil partnership of your parents
- certificate (if this is applicable)
Once you have been granted citizenship by descent, you can apply for a passport by submitting your original foreign passport, your foreign birth registration certificate, and any other pertinent documents.
Irish adoptee passport requirements
In addition to the basic required documents listed above (see introduction), you must produce the following Irish passport criteria if you were born abroad and adopted by an Irish citizen under Irish law:
- Your certificate of international adoption (demonstrating your entry in the Register of Intercountry Adoptions)
- Evidence of the adoptive parent’s Irish citizenship at the time of adoption (birth certificate or passport)
If you were adopted by an Irish citizen under Irish law and were born in Ireland or Northern Ireland, you must submit the following documentation in addition to the standard requirements:
- Your adoption records
- A birth certificate or Irish passport as evidence of your adoptive parent’s citizenship in Ireland at the time of adoption
When applying for a passport while living in Northern Ireland or overseas, you must additionally present your original passport, national ID card, social security card, or a certified copy of your driver’s license.
